Selecting Change Agents: Exploring Traits and Skills in a Simulated Environment

Nikolaou, Ioannis; Gouras, Athanasios; Vakola, Maria; Bourantas, Dimitris

doi:10.1080/14697010701779173

Cited by 44 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 69 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Other authors believe that the person managing change should come from a background which is less technical or project-based and more focused on behavioral science such as human resources, organizational development, and/or psychology (Kanter et al, 1992;Connor and Lake, 1994;French and Bell, 1999;Cummings and Worley, 2001 (Smid et al 2006), organisational development consultants (French and Bell, 1999;Caluwé and Vermaak, 2003), as well as an "external consultant or internal project leader" (Jarrett, 2004, p.246;Jarrett, 2004). Although the use of projects to implement change (Biedenbach and Söderholm, 2008) and the need for project management skills (Nikolaou et al 2007) Comparative competencies from the literature Crawford (2002) identified aspects of project manager competency by comparing the findings of a number of research based studies. Aspects of competency were grouped and then ranked according to the number of times they were mentioned across eight studies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Competencies for managing change

Crawford

Nahmias²

2010

International Journal of Project Management

138

100

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Organisational changes are now recognised as a specific project type that can benefit from the application of project management skills, tools and techniques. Associated with this trend is evidence of a degree of rivalry in the marketplace between Project Managers and Change Managers concerning who should be managing business change. And these are not the only contenders. Corporate executives and senior managers, although they may engage the assistance of both Project Managers and Change Managers, generally see themselves as taking the leading roles in managing major organisational changes and transformations. As such endeavours are most likely to take the form of programs, comprising multiple projects across the organisation, Program Managers are seen by some as being most likely to be responsible for managing organisational change initiatives. This paper reports on research undertaken to explore the differences in approach and practice of Project, Program and Change Managers as a basis for determining the competencies required to effectively manage change initiatives.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Competencies for managing change

Crawford

Nahmias²

2010

International Journal of Project Management

138

100

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Having the proper administrators in the planning and implementation phases is also a necessity (Clair and Dufresne, 2004;Woodward and Hendry, 2004;Nikolaou et al, 2007). Kezar (2004, p. 444) writes downsizing and restructuring without input from faculty, staff, or students is now commonplace; yet studies demonstrate that program reduction or restructuring is best implemented with input from the academic community .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Other Organizations Are Doing It, Why Shouldn't We? A Look at Downsizing and Organizational Identity through an Institutional Theory Lens

Day

Armenakis

Feild

et al. 2012

Journal of Change Management

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Downsizing is a current 'hot-button' issue confronting many organizations and enticing researchers alike. This case study explored the complex nature of these change initiatives, through both macro-environmental antecedents and non-financial organizational consequences. The adoption of downsizing was conceptualized through an institutional theory lens, and an organizational identity perspective to downsizing outcomes was applied, paying particular attention to the alignment of post-downsizing activities with the organization's mission. The case study examined the events leading up to the implementation of a downsizing initiative at a major university and then the post-implementation restructuring aftermath. It is demonstrated how organizational change can result in less-than-expected outcomes if the planning and implementation phases receive inadequate attention. Suffering from severe fiscal stress, decision makers mimicked a popular downsizing initiative without a thorough diagnosis, ultimately creating an environment for ineffectiveness. Specifically, a severe miscalculation in the number of faculty retirees resulted in academic chaos: a decrease in the classes offered; loss of administrative and student services; and loss of faculty achievements along with university name recognition. Most notably, a majority of retiree research endeavours were eliminated; a shocking outcome that conflicts with the mission of a major research university.

show abstract

“…The judicious use of an external advisory committee, composed of consultants from outside the program EIP and as part of a participatory learning process (Whyte, 1991;Patton, 1997), its needed for a renovation project and can be helpful in providing independent program evaluation. This EIP approach has also enabled achieve the following objectives: a) making knowledge and experience of those involved the main source of information for program management (Argyris & Schön, 1978;Turner et al, 1996) (Nikolaou et al, 2007); b) encourage the learning of all actors (Rondinelli, 1993;Preskill & Torres, 1999); c) focus changes from the beneficiaries of the actions viewpoint (Korten, 1980;Uphoff, 1990;Hughes, 2007;Nieminen & Lehtonen, 2008). The following scheme ( Figure 1) shows to the process followed in the EIP implementation according to the programs management phases: (Pellegrinelli, 1997): (1) Initiation, (2) Definition and Planning, (3) Projects Delivery and (4) Renewal, (5) (Gĳselaers, 1996;Johnson, 1999;Padmanadhan & Katti, 2002;Chinnowsky et al, 2006; as the best means to achieve effective competency-based education (Mulcahy, 2000;Parsons et al, 2005;Kelly, 2007) integrating knowledge, skills and values.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%